“County closes Tenaris Capital Fund contract” by: Mike Reddell

Matagorda County closed out its $1.5 million, four-year Texas Capital Fund contract that paid for Texas 35 road improvements in front of TenarisBayCity at commissioners court’s regular meeting Monday, Jan. 8.
No comments were received at commissioners court’s Jan. 3 public hearing on closing out the contract that began Jan. 16, 2014, requiring Tenaris to hire 300 employees.
Tenaris has created more than 600 jobs at its $1.8 billion Bay City steel mill, where an inauguration last month drew more than 1,000 people, including federal, state and local officials.
County Judge Nate McDonald explained the Capital Fund grant paid for the necessary earthwork related to the Texas 35 construction of a turning lane as well as deceleration and acceleration lanes.
Tenaris met the obligations of the grant and created 343 jobs that can be counted toward the TCF contract, a minimum of 300 were required, the court’s Monday agenda indicated.
In other action at Monday’s meeting, the court:

Awarded bids for road material and for road construction with equipment for fiscal 2018.

The road material bid has several components for different materials and various companies are part of that process.
The road construction with equipment bid was awarded to Faltisek Paving Partnership of El Campo, while Matagorda Construction & Materials of Bay City was designated as the alternate.
County Auditor Kristen Kubecka explained the county budgeted $2.2 million overall for road and bridge maintenance in all four precincts.
But the actual expenditures depend on how much work is done and on vendor availability, she said.

Approved a Heavy Load Permit application by Hilcorp Energy Company, a Houston-based oil and natural gas exploration and production company, to travel CR 244 – better known as Gulf Road – for a distance of 2.8 miles.